care-bear-forbes and the-lonely-hybrid
by theoriginalcheeesecake
Summary: What most people didn't know about the infamous bad-boy, Hollywood heartthrob Klaus Mikaelson was that as a teenager he was the opposite of a bad-boy, and the opposite of a heartthrob; he was once a scrawny, weedy, lonely boy who spent to much time on the internet. He exchanged his online friends for his new life the day he logged off for good. One friend in particular.
1. Chapter 1

What most people didn't know about the infamous bad-boy, Hollywood heartthrob Klaus Mikaelson was that as a teenager he was the opposite of a bad-boy, and the opposite of a heartthrob.

Unlike the rest of his siblings – who had come out of the womb perfect and beautiful – he had been not attractive at all, and his awkward phase had lasted from the age of 12 - when he shot up and became scrawny, weedy and lanky - through all his teenage years - when he had been scrawny, weedy, lanky, had glasses, braces, pimples _and_ a social anxiety born into him from years of psychological and physical abuse from both his parents - all the way through to the age of 23.

By this time, however, Niklaus had mastered coding, every version, variation and rerelease of GTA and WOW amongst other games, had got a diploma in cooking – because he had been bored one summer – become best friends with a stranger on the internet, completed an undergraduate degree in both art history and the dramatic arts, _and_ had starring role in a BBC mini series called 'When We Overlook the Nerdy Hackers' - a role which he was definitely type cast for.

But on his 23rd birthday, he looked determinately in his mirror. He knew he was incredibly intelligent, and a talented actor - many years of pretending he was fine when his insides were screaming in pain had trained him well. But to make it big in Hollywood, unfortunately, you couldn't rely on talent alone.

So, Klaus packed up his life in London, logged off from the internet for good – abandoning all the friends he's made – and flew to the states, where he found he the best personal trainer he could afford and the most reputable one on one acting tutor he could find, so he could chase his dream.

He trained, and practiced, and sweated and cried, until his 24th birthday, when he looked in the mirror again and smiled.

He had done it.

Gone was the scrawny, weedy, lanky boy he'd been a year ago. If he was honest he was almost unrecognisable from who he'd been 12 months ago. He felt the tiniest bit of guilt eat at his insides, thinking about all he'd left behind, but he had to do this. He couldn't be that person anymore.

To cap it all, he'd been offered a leading role in one of the most anticipated films of the year.

And so awkward, nerdy, social outcast Nik died forever, and Hollywood heartthrob, bad-boy Klaus was born.

He honestly blamed his bad-boy tendencies on the fact he had never socialised properly as a teenager, and so the attention and partying went straight to his head.

But he didn't mind, he was living the high life, and throwing it back in the faces of all those who had ridiculed him for having big dreams.

Ten years passed before awkward Niklaus surfaced again, and in that time he won two Oscars, been nominated for five, starred in countless blockbusters, had been with more girls than he could remember, and had become even more attractive to the point where he had one People's Magazine's sexiest man alive six years running.

The day he reintroduced himself to his nerd side, was the day he had been on a talk show and they had read some very raunchy fan fiction written about him and Bulgarian supermodel Tatia Petrova, who he'd had a very short lived fling with – models were _way_ too highly stung for him.

While he had laughed through the interview, and kept his cool while the host trash talked the person who had written it, but Klaus couldn't help but feel upset by what had happened.

Despite his determined transformation, he still vividly remembered what it was like to feel completely alone and have only the Internet and your own dark imagination to keep you company. He remembered the hours he spent writing stories similar to the one that had been read out, or drawing fanart, or participating in fandom events, and even though that wasn't him anymore, he would never forget those times. Could never forget them.

When he got back to his home after the interview, a niggling feeling. He ate, and showered, but the feeling which had been born inside him during the interview engulfed him,

He flopped his bed, and as the clock ticked past midnight, Klaus pulled his computer toward him, not to FaceTime his family, nor to fetch a booty call – like he usually would. Nope, instead he opened a site he'd not touched since he was 23.

 _Tumblr._

The site read.

 _Email_

 _Password_

 _Log in_

 _Forgotten your password?_

The layout and set up of the home screen was still the same, but it looked so different to what his teenage memories recalled. Excitement was thrumming through him as he tapped in his email address – _lonelyhybrid -_ and then his password.

As he hit log in, Klaus was stunned by the difference him before him. And was slightly guilty to see the large number of unread asks, but other than that he remembered exactly why he'd loved this site. The people were hilarious, the gifsets were so much more creative than he remembered, and there were people who seemed to get everything he was feeling.

Klaus spent hours on the site. Initially, he trawled through his blog – _.com_ – then through his dashboard.

He was excited, and a little self-conscious, to see his face staring back at him from many different posts. It seemed someone he used to follow back in the day, had become a Klaus Mikaelson dedication blog. It intrigued him, because it seemed that all-about-klaus followed him back.

He was intrigued to work out which of his mutuals had become so infatuated with him, but he was also feeling guilty again. All those people who had helped him through all his emotional problems, and just up and left them, with no explanation.

As he followed the link to the blog's main page he couldn't help the smile that spread across his face.

The title of the blog read _The Other Side of Klaus Mikaelson._

The bio read –

 _Just a small town girl, desperately hoping to find her Klaus._

As he began combing through the blog, he honestly thought he could feel himself falling for the person who ran it a little bit. The bright, shining personality of the blogger was evident in every single post.

Each post was written with such care, and every gifset was crafted to only show the best parts of him. There was nothing about his tendency to break girls' hearts, or his drunken tantrums at paparazzi. There was no mention of pregnancy scares, or his famous feud with Damon Salvatore.

No, everything on the blog was designed to show people his softer side. There were pictures of his trips to Africa – where he spent three months every year teaching the children – something the press rarely reported on as it wasn't glamorous enough. There were gifs of him appearing on his younger sister's YouTube channel – something he loved doing, because no one could make him feel good like Rebekah could. And there were long metas about how his bad-boy persona was really just an act to cover his insecurities. As he read those, he wondered how she managed to pinpoint his inner most feelings when he could hardly reconcile why he acted the way he did.

He read every single tag and it was all he could do to not hug his computer.

 _#oh my gosh, #klaus mikaelson, #precious snowflake, #sinnamon roll, #he's far too cute to be allowed on this earth, #klaus cuddly teddy bear mikaelson, #cute, #queue_

While he kind of resented being called cute, he kind of loved it too.

He stayed on the blog, entranced by her words and encapsulated by her voice, until the morning sun began to stream through his still open curtains. In amongst the parts about him, he was able to make out her other interests. There were a number of posts about her thoughts on climate change and feminism, and he was stunned by how convincing her arguments were. While her writing style was familiar, he still for the life of him couldn't remember why he followed her all those years ago.

As the day drew on, and dawn became mid-morning, he kept scrolling through post after post, becoming as enamoured with her as she was with him. His eyes and body was tired, screaming out for sleep – or at least food – but Klaus couldn't tear his eyes away.

When the posts began to change, from her fascination with him to TV shows, characters, ships, world politics, amongst other things, he had to stop himself from swooning with feels. Being affected by feels was another thing that hadn't happened in ten years. Apparently he and the mystery blogger had extremely similar tastes in pop culture, and similar opinions on worldviews.

Klaus felt his stomach do backflips and he squirmed a little on the bed when he saw a gifset, much earlier than when her vigorous blogging of him began, from him in the BBC series and the caption read – _gosh, isn't he the absolute cutest!_ _#klaus mikaelson, #why have i not seen this show before, #when we overlook the nerdy hacker, #he's the cutest nerdy hacker I've ever seen #klaus mikaelson hack my heart please! #or my body #either one #kthanksbye_

Klaus couldn't believe that anyone would have thought that him then was cute, and it made him so incredibly happy. He rolled onto his back and grinned, unconditionally, at the ceiling for a few moments. He _needed_ this girl him his life.

* * *

 **Hello!**

 **This is going to be a little propably 3-5 parter. I was given the prompt by the INCREDIBLE gooddame on Tumblr - if you don't follow her, you're definitely missing out! She is the kindest, loveliest human, and it almost hurts. And anyway, I was kind of just struck with the stick of inspiration. So, yeah, I hope you like it. The next part will be up sooon.**


	2. Chapter 2

After a few more moments of his happy reprieve, Klaus continued searching through the blog. It continued to baffle how much this girl could make him smile with simple words, and he still, for the life of him, couldn't work out why he'd followed her in the first place.

And then, his eyes locked with hers. The eyes that haunted his dreams. Then he registered the rest the photo, and the glorious golden that framed her beautiful face.

And it all came flooding back to him.

xxx

 _Some fifteen years earlier_

 _ **care-bear-forbes asked:**_ _Hey, I followed you a couple of weeks back, and I just wanted to say I love your blog! Your writing is incredible, and I completely agree with almost everything you post. When your name comes up on my dashboard I can't help but smile. So thank you._

 _Klaus stared at his screen, thrown for a loop by the message he'd woken up to. He'd noticed she'd followed him a few weeks ago, but he hadn't followed back; she was a girl, it was unlikely she'd like the things he did. But, as Klaus finally looked on her blog, he realised he was wrong._

 _She wrote too, it seemed, though her writing was a lot more light-hearted than the things he wrote. Sure, she posted things about flowers, and there was_ a lot _of pink. But he found himself laughing at her observations, and pondering her ideas._

 _He spent hours that day stalking through blog, shut up in his room, not talking to the outside world, just enjoying the inner workings of the brain of care-bear-forbes. Then he spent even more hours agonising about how on earth he was to respond to her, it wasn't like he'd ever really talked to a girl before._

 _The only time he surfaced was to find some food around dinnertime, when Kol obnoxiously said, "Nik! I haven't seen you all day, found some good girl to jack off to?"_

 _Klaus just growled at his brother, as he shut himself back in his room. He could never tell Kol how close to the mark he was._

 _ **the-lonely-hybrid answered:**_ _You know, I think that's probably the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to me. I really like your blog and writing too. I'm looking forward to seeing you on my dashboard in the future._

 _He assumed waiting for her response would be the longest time in his life, but right after he sent his message, he found the link to her Instagram account._

 _And, as he first laid his eyes on her, he just_ knew _he'd never find anyone as beautiful as her, and it simultaneously made him so so elated, but also incredibly sad; no one like her would ever want him in any capacity._

 _ **care-bear-forbes:**_ _oh my gosh! I am so happy you like my stuff! It's nowhere near as good as anything you come up with, but I have fun. I loved the drawing of the wolves you posted the other day. You're so talented!_

 _And that's how it was for the next five years; he and Caroline became as close as it was possible to be when you lived on the opposite sides of the world. While she was three years his junior, the two of them were still always there for each other. He threw a tumblr party for her on her 18_ _th_ _and she a 21_ _st_ _for him. He was always rued the fact she lived so far away wishing they could have been real life friends as well._

 _Then he turned 23. She was the only thing stopping him from cutting off from his nerdy self completely. But she was also the main thing pushing him to leave._

 _And he did._

 _That was perhaps the biggest price he paid for fame._

xxx

Klaus stared, gaping, at her face.

The girl who had befriended him, helped him, _saved_ him all those years ago, worshipped the version of him he become, after sacrificing who he was to her.

His mind reeling at the complexity of it all, and he suddenly felt the bone-deep weariness that had been the for the last decade overtake him. He barely had the presence of mind to close his computer and pull off his jeans and t-shirt, before collapsing back, exhausted into his bed.

His sleep, however, was far from peaceful.

He dreamed about her, her face and curls swirling around his mind. But they weren't the pleasant dreams he usually had about her, however. They were the disconcerting, bone-chilling kind of dreams where you couldn't run, or cry out for help. They were the kind of dreams where she was ripped away from him in the very last moment before he could touch her.

He'd never been able to touch her, or see her with his own eyes. But that was the price you paid for having Internet friends.

Klaus was woken, not too many hours later, by the tail end of one such dream. Unable to fall asleep again, he restlessly tossed and turned, floating thoughts of her still spiralling through his head. Did she think of him? Did she know the Klaus Mikaelson she revered was truly the friend who had abandoned her? They had traded pictures every now and then, did she recognise the incurably awkward boy buried beneath the sculpted muscle and designer clothes? Was she even more beautiful than before? Was she still the same bright ray of sunshine she had once been? Had he ruined her? Was he giving himself too much credit? Had she cared at all?

He may not have had the most restful of sleeps, but when Klaus finally rose, he knew he wouldn't be able to get a wink unless he found out the answers to his questions.

He pulled his compute toward him, and, for a second day running, he reopened Tumblr. With a heavy heart and shaky fingers, awkward, nerdy Niklaus began typing his first post in ten years.

As he clicked _post_ another question joined the ever-growing list in his mind.

Would she know his post was for her?

* * *

 **Umm, hope this part didn't disappoint... LOL. There are five parts written (all about this length) and will be about two more I think. Hmm, do you want a happy ending or a sad ending or a bittersweet we're mates but we actually love each other but we can't be together ending? Thoughts? I don't know why I'm splitting it up so much... but I am... plz don't hate me. I'll probably update like once every day or two, I dunno. Let me know what you think! yOU'RE ALL WONDERFUL HUMANS THANK YOU! xxxxx**


	3. Chapter 3

Caroline gazed around, taking in all the details, savouring the moment.

She couldn't believe that after all this time her dream was finally becoming a reality. She couldn't believe even more that even after her issues and hospital visits, she had managed to bring her vision to life in less than ten years.

This was the biggest leap of faith she'd ever taken, but she knew she had to try. She had wanted this for so long – too long – to get cold feet now.

She traced her eyes over every detail once more, and decided to call it a night. She had been there for thirteen hours already, though it wasn't as if she had anyone to go home to.

For some reason, despite her desperate need to settle down and have a family of her own, she had never been able to find anyone who fit the bill. And she never really knew why.

There were men she had dated, and men she had _dated_ , but she had never really dated. Not in the proper sense. She'd never found anyone who caused her to catch her breath with one look, to make her tingle with one touch.

No one except for…

But she didn't let her mind go there. He wasn't important. Not anymore.

Caroline sighed, set the alarm, and locked the door, before stepping out onto bustling New York street.

The cab ride was quiet, obviously, she was the only one there, and so was her apartment when she finally made it back.

She showered quickly, grabbed some food and settled onto her bed to log on. Immense relief flooded through her as she saw the calming blue of her Tumblr dashboard. Yes, she had a real job, yes, she had real life friends, and _yes_ she was about to open the newest highlight of New York's social scene, but there was still a large part of her that was attached to the site.

She couldn't quite shake what it was like to be fifteen, and desperate for someone to talk to – to find someonewho made her feel less neurotic. And the site provided that. It calmed her, settled her nerves. There were so many more people like her. Who shared her weird and whacky palate for TV shows, books, music and art. So many more people who understood how it felt to always play second fiddle to the prettier, more charismatic girls who didn't really quite know what emotional turmoil felt like.

Tumblr had been her haven then, and it still was now.

Setting to work on that day's posts, she sifted through all the new information about Klaus that had come through. She loved almost everything he got up to – even his bad boy activities – but his interview the previous day had annoyed her, however. If they were going to read fanfiction on national television, they should at least not ridicule the author for being creative. She was consoled, at least, by the fact that Klaus had seemed to not be comfortable with the nastiness and had changed the subject quickly after.

She sighed some more, as she stared at his face. She didn't know what it was about him that had her so infatuated. Her opinions of him were probably completely wrong. He probably was just a self-assured ass. But there was something in his eyes that comforted her. That made her feel safe. That was… familiar.

She had no idea where the familiarity came from, it wasn't as if she ran into many British people in her lifetime, but it was there, and unless she met him and disproved her theories about him, she would stick to her guns.

After an hour or so of serious blogging, Caroline was almost ready to go to sleep. Tomorrow was her big opening night. She was throwing an incredibly over the top party to commemorate the event, and she was expecting near on a thousand people to walk through her doors. Because of her activeness on the web, she had spread the word really well, and some of her posts and tweets had even been shared by some grade A celebrities.

She was beyond excited, and knew she needed some sleep or she'd be dead on her feet in the morning. Before sleep however, she had one last task to do, though she did it in vain, she knew. No one posted after ten years. She had lost him forever.

With a heavy heart, the tiniest bit of hope left in her began to type his URL. All she had to do was type an 't' into the search bar, before the rest of the letters jumped forward, automatically filling the remaining characters.

She didn't know why she still checked. She wasn't that girl anymore, and was a 30-year-old business owner, for Christ's sake. But she couldn't help herself. She clung onto him and how much comfort he offered her all these years later, because she was deep down still the insecure girl who wanted to feel special again.

As she hit the enter button, and his same bleak theme popped up on her screen, Caroline expected to read the same words she read once a day for the last ten years.

 _The cliché is there, but your smile truly makes my heart skip a beat, my love._

Caroline had hated those words. Hated them for so long. But after some time, she grew to love them. They were one of the only reliable things in her life. She had no family, and she couldn't count on her friends, they all had their own lives in different states. But those words had become her motto in life, even if there wasn't really a moral to them. Because of those words, even when things became too much, she always kept smiling brightly, in the tiny hope that someone was watching, their heart skipping because of her.

So imagine her surprise, shock and anguish when her eyes were met with seventeennew words staring back at her from the white display.

 _There are too many words we haven't spoken over the last decade. Please forgive me, my love._

Tears filled her eyes, and she knew any chance of a peaceful sleep had gone.

She didn't know what the words meant at all. And, even after all the years of _wishing_ he'd come back to her, Caroline now, more than anything, wished he hadn't.

* * *

 **Hiiiii! Hope you all had a lovely weekend. I know I did. :) :) I have REALLLY loved hearing people's thoughts and opinions. It seems that the consensus has been happy ending... not that I'm surprised ;) Keep your thoughts coming if you want! ^_^ You're makking me smile! Reading your reviews has made me sahhh happpy! So thank you! BYE FOR NOW NOT FOREVER!**


	4. Chapter 4

Klaus groaned loudly after he hung up his phone. Apparently he was expected at a grand opening of some new club while he was staying in the city. How predictable. He hated doing social things that he hadn't initiated. He hated when his manager made him go places just because it was what everyone else was doing.

" _There will be so many good contacts there!"_ his manager, Ric, had said, attempting to impress upon Klaus the importance of his attendance. " _Who knows, maybe you will even meet the girl of your dreams there._ "

He highly doubted that, the girl of his dreams was really just that these days, a dream. Despite that, Klaus decided to go, if begrudgingly so. There was no use stewing about whether Caroline had seen his post or not. It wasn't much of an attempt at contact, but it something.

He slept the day away, still recovering from the all nighter he'd pulled a couple of nights ago, and only dragged his aching body out of bed when he only had just enough time to get to the party by a reasonable hour.

Getting in a cab, Klaus grunted the address to the driver, as he had not taken enough notice when Ric had told him the actual name of the place opening.

After he arrived, his jaw dropped. There were at least two hundred people waiting in line to get into the place, and Klaus thanked his lucky stars Ric had got his name on the VIP list – there was no way he was waiting in _that_ line.

Slipping through the door, he was met with a cacophony of sound and the large dance floor that was just like any other club, but the look and feel was much more like an upper class bar than a club. There were stairs that led to a half level balcony, which was serving food, and was a little quieter, and would be perfect for having nibbles and having a chat, and then a third level to the place, which would be quieter still. There was even an outdoor beer garden, which was decorated with twinkling fairy lights.

Klaus looked around, amazed. He'd had never even heard of the place, and still hadn't managed to catch its name, but his interest was certainly piqued, and he just _knew_ he would be coming back.

He got himself a drink, and sat at the bar, more than happy to just soak up the atmosphere for a while, until one of his closest friends in the entertainment industry, Marcel Gerard, slung his arm around his shoulders. Klaus had met Marcel just after he moved to the states. They had both been young and had dreams of making it big, although Marcel wanted to be a musician.

"I'm glad you came!" Marcel yelled over the din. "I tipped off Ric that this would be the hottest place in NYC tonight! I know the girl who owns this place, she's been planning this for nearly fifteen years apparently."

Klaus nodded and smiled, but stopped listening to Marcel, as he thought back to Caroline. He wondered whether she'd achieved her dream. She'd always wanted to combine her love of organising events with her dream to open a bar.

"Klaus, are you listening to me?" Marcel asked, sardonically, pulling Klaus from his reverie.

"Not really," he said, smirking. "Better things to do than listen to you."

"Is that so," Marcel laughed. "You'd get on with Caroline I think."

Klaus stiffened, "Caroline?"

"Yeah, the owner. I met her last week she was at a bar drinking alone and I kept her company. I made a move on her and she politely told me to keep my hands to myself. Never had a girl reject me so bluntly." Marcel smiled at his story. "She proceeded to invite me here tonight, then we had a nice chat."

"Caroline's a pretty name," Klaus said, distractedly, wistfully hoping that the Caroline in his mind, and the Caroline here tonight were the same person. But he doubted it. Coincidences like that didn't happen.

"Yeah, if you say so," Marcel quipped. "Now, let's get drinking!"

xxx

Caroline beamed down at all the people there for _her_ party. There were literally hundreds of people dancing, boozing, laughing and just generally having a good time. It was just after one in the morning and the party was still raging, and everyone on social media was raving about it being the event of the year.

She felt so so proud.

Caroline had snuck a cheeky look at her takings a little over an hour ago, and she had definitely made enough to keep her afloat for a while and start paying things off. She knew it wouldn't be easy, especially seeing as her accountant had quit on her only a week ago. But she didn't mind the hard work. Her dream was coming true.

To cap it off, it seemed that Klaus Mikaelson, of all people, had made an appearance. Her inner fangirl had a gone into complete meltdown mode when she'd put his name on the list, but was forcing herself to be professional; there were still a good few hours she had to keep it together yet.

Her happy moment passed quickly, as one of her staff came to get her. Apparently someone was 'meant' to be on the VIP list and wasn't. She sighed and rolled her eyes – knowing that everyone who was 'meant' to be on the list had already showed up – but she still had to sort it out. There was no rest for the wicked.

xxx

As the night wound down, and four in the morning approached, Caroline felt her body aching from head to toe. She knew her mascara was running, and her hair was a total mess. She knew she still had hours of work left to do before she could call it a night, but she didn't care. She had done it. She had made it through her first night.

She sent all the staff home, as they were as exhausted as she was, and then the bouncers, once all the straggles dispersed while she waited for the cleaning staff to arrive. She didn't _have_ to wait, nor did she _have_ to do the books right then, but she was too controlling to trust the cleaners to do the job properly – it was their first time after all – and for all her exhaustion, she was also exhilarated beyond belief.

In a moment of quiet celebration, Caroline pulled some of her secret stash of ice cream out of one of freezers, planted her bum on the bar counter and began to happily eat, congratulating herself on a job well done.

She was three mouthfuls into the delicious dessert when she heard someone fumbling with the front door, before bursting in.

Her leisurely mood went out the window, as she realised she'd made one crucial error when she relaxed…

She hadn't locked the door.

* * *

 **HEY! Thank you so much for the lovely reviews and all the really heart-warming support this story has received. So much love for you all! Thank you again! ^_^ Also, thanks for those who said what type of ending they wanted. Most of you wanted a happy one, shock horror :P (lololol) BYE FOR NOW NOT FOREVER!**


	5. Chapter 5

Klaus had to say, he was pretty drunk. But he was good drunk. Not so far gone that he got angry, but just enough for the alcohol to be buzzing around his brain, making him feel extremely happy and nostalgic. While he'd never admit it to Ric, he'd had a pretty amazing time. He and Marcel had found some of their other partying pals and had got on the piss pretty hard; especially once they discovered all the free goodies in the beer garden, and had stayed until stumps.

That Caroline girl really knew how to throw a party.

Klaus was smiled a little dreamily at the occupants of the cab, before turning sluggishly to Marcel and saying, "I will definitely be going back there."

"Me too. That is the best damn bourbon I've ever tasted."

"What's the place called again?" Klaus asked, realising he _still_ didn't know.

"Something weird, but kind of fitting," Marcel said, screwing his eyes up in an effort to remember. "The Lonely… Harpy? Hydrangea?"

"Hybrid," the taxi driver piped up.

"Yeah, that's it. The Lonely Hybrid."

Klaus felt his eyes go wide, and his heart stopped. There was no way. It _had_ to be a coincidence. Surely.

"The Lonely Hybrid?" Klaus croaked, all traces of tipsiness fleeing from his body.

"Uh-huh, Caroline said it was to do with an old friend she once had. He apparently was the only one who had faith in her, and always encouraged her to follow her dream."

Klaus' mind was racing, his thoughts motoring miles a minute. He'd never believed in fate or destiny or any of that written in the stars malarkey, but a _Caroline_ , with a dream to open a bar, with the same name as _his_ URL.

It was too much of a coincidence to ignore.

"Stop the cab!" Klaus said, harshly, causing everyone to stare at him, shocked. He was only a few blocks away, he could run there, no problem. If it really was _his_ Caroline then she would still be there, she'd always had problems delegating.

"I said stop the cab!" he repeated, more urgently still.

"Okay, okay," the driver grumbled, complying, assuming Klaus needed a little spew.

But to everyone's surprise, without second glance back at the cab, Klaus sprinted off away, the darkness of the early New York morning engulfing him after only a few metres.

"What was that about?" Marcel mused.

Klaus ran, faster than he ever had before. He had to know. He _had_ to find out the answers to his questions, and apologise, and grovel, and make her see he was still there for her, even if he was a decade late.

As building after building flashed by, he became more and more nervous and desperate to get to her.

But as he reached the building, and was faced with a closed door, Klaus didn't know how to proceed.

So, he did the natural thing, and tried the door.

It opened.

xxx

Caroline was cursing herself.

How on earth had she forgotten to lock the damn door! This was _New York_ ,for Christ's sake, she knew it's dangers. And it wasn't as if she were a rookie. She'd been living there for a good five years now.

She frantically looked around, desperate to find something to defend herself with. But there was nothing, unless she wanted to throw either a chair, or her plastic ice cream tub at the interloper. In the end, she ducked out of site behind the bar and gripped a bottle of expensive alcohol close to her chest.

She raised it above her head as she heard the man lumber further into the room, and she snuck a peak, trying to find a way out of the situation.

Even from her distance and limited vision, she knew the man was out of breath, she could hear his heavy breathing, and she could smell the light musk he was exuding. She hoped she could use his physical exhaustion to her advantage.

Then he passed a window, and his face was caught by the light of a streetlamp.

"Oh my god!" she cried, jumping up from her stop behind the bar. "You're Klaus Mikaelson!"

He turned and faced her, and Caroline was struck with just how handsome he was in person, even more so than he was in pictures and on the big screen.

Klaus said nothing, just continued to stare at her, his eyes widening.

"You scared me half to death," Caroline began rambling. "I mean, the least you could do is knock! I thought you were going to be some crazy murderer or something. I suppose it would serve me right for leaving my door unlocked, right?"

Caroline paused to take a breather, giving him the chance to respond. When he didn't, her anxiety at meeting her daydream cranked up a notch and the rambling continued.

"Did you leave something here? Is that why you came back? I mean, I don't mean to be rude and, _trust me_ , I am _so_ glad you came tonight and are here. But, we are actually closed, despite my open door and everything. But if you needed something, I am more than willing to help… and…"

Caroline trailed off as she noticed the intensity of his gaze, which hadn't wavered from her face since she'd first popped up from behind the counter. He was looking at her as though she was his everything, as though she was the sun, and he the earth, destined to circle her for all eternity.

"Is everything okay?" she mumbled, becoming even more nervous still that he still hadn't said anything. "You're not hurt are you?"

She moved towards him then, seemingly to give him a once over, check for injuries. He still couldn't speak or move however. Now there was no barrier between them, he could take in all of her. For the first time in his life he was seeing Caroline's perfect form with his own to eyes, and hearing her voice with his own two ears. It was a sweeter moment than he'd ever anticipated.

"Klaus?" she asked him, concern clouding her features. "I mean, you don't mind me calling you that, do you? Would you prefer Mr Mikaelson?"

She cocked her head slightly, and her eyes met his. He nearly lost his balance at seeing the incredible blue he'd tried to capture so many times with his paints in real life.

He took a step forward, extending one of his hands, desperate to feel her skin.

"Caroline," he murmured, and the concern fled from her face, and was replaced with wariness.

"How do you know my name?" she asked suspiciously, but she would be lying if she said her stomach wasn't doing backflips at what her name sounded like on his tongue.

"I am so sorry, Caroline," he whispered, moving closer to her, needing to experience her smells and sounds of her breathing, more than he needed to breathe himself.

"Sorry for what?" she said, shakily. "I don't understand."

She was rooted to the spot, unable to move her legs, pinned as they were by the unwavering passion in his stare. He moved closer still, his hand coming up to brush away a curl from her face.

How was it legal that she be so beautiful? He knew no matter how long he lived, there wouldn't be enough words in any language to describe the pure beauty that was Caroline Forbes.

He felt a small shudder run through her as the skin of his palm graced her cheek, and she leaned ever so slightly into his touch.

"I am so so sorry," he repeated, his eyes still boring into hers, his hands still caressing her face.

"For what?" she managed to choke out, trying to process what was happening. Why on earth was Klaus Mikaelson cupping her face and apologising? Why…

Then Caroline saw it clearer than anything, and she honestly didn't know how she'd not seen it before. The stormy grey eyes that she looked into every day, the plump lips that were so often smirking, the dimples that had melted her heart for ten years.

But she realised then, it hadn't only been ten years. It had been fifteen. They were the same eyes that she had seen crossed so many times as a teen, as he tried to cheer her up. They were the same lips she fantasised about touching with hers. They were the same dimples she'd playfully teased all those years ago.

And she was horrified.

* * *

 **Hi! Hope you liked! I am _so_ flattered by the response this story has recieved! Thank you so so so much for all the faves, follows and reviews! Make my day! xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sorry about the cliffhanger though... The only way is up, right? **


	6. Chapter 6

"Nik?" she asked, her voice wavering with something he couldn't place. She leaned even further into his face touch for a moment. Oh, how easy it would be to forget all the hurt and just go with her gut, which was screaming out to be with him.

"It's me, love," he breathed, a small, hopeful smile pulling at the corner of his lips.

Tears began to fill her eyes and she yanked herself away from him, desperate to not show him how hurt she was.

"You didn't even say goodbye," she choked. "One day I logged on and you were just… gone."

"I know, love, I'm s…"

"Don't you dare say you're sorry!" she screamed at him, the small amount of composure she had, snapping. "Ten years, Nik! _Ten_! A decade of wondering what I did to make my best friend leave me like that."

She stumbled over to the bar, gripping it until her knuckles went white, trying to find some stability in her world that had been turned completely upside down, fighting back the tears that were still bursting to fall.

"Do you know how many hours I spent crying over you? How many hours I scrolled through all your posts, trying to relive all our happy times? How long it was before I could trust anyone again?"

Caroline gave up her battle with the tears and let them stream down her face. She couldn't believe this was happening. The amount of times she'd envisaged their reunion over the years, and this had certainly not been one of them.

"Caroline, please, you have to underst…"

"I don't _have_ to understand anything, Nik!" she yelled. "Maybe you could quit our relationship cold turkey, but I couldn't. I wasn't even prepared. You just disappeared!"

"I never wanted to leave you, I just…" he tried to say.

"I thought you'd _died_ , Nik. Or at least something awful had happened! All those horrific stories you poured out to me about your dad, I thought he'd finally snapped and killed you! I imagined your death, had nightmares about it. I couldn't eat or sleep for months. Do you know what that feels like?"

"Sweetheart, please…" Klaus felt ill. He'd never realised the affect his leaving would have on her. It had hurt him – _really_ hurt him. But it was that or stay tied to that person forever, and he owed it to himself to break free.

He was staring at her, the pain evident in his eyes. He took a small step toward her but she stopped him with look of poison.

"You know, I wish you had died," Caroline said, coldly. "Because now I know you left me in the gutter because you wanted to be famous, and I wasn't cool enough."

"That's just not how it was," Klaus said, immediately going on the defence, getting angry himself.

"Oh yeah? And how was it?"

"I had to leave that behind, Caroline!" He yelled, his temper rising.

"Why? I was the _only_ one, remember, who believed in you, who listened to you. I talked you down from so many things."

"It was because…" Klaus tried to answer, but was once again cut off.

"Do you know what makes me sick?" she cried. "I coped with losing you, by obsessing over _you_."

She laughed her bitter laugh again, and continued when Klaus opened his mouth again. "I always saw the best in Klaus Mikaelson, always wanted him to succeed. I loved his cheeky little British sense of humour, and I always saw past his bad boy image to the good person I thought was in him. I can't believe I never put two and two together."

She was shaking her head at her own stupidity, and Klaus felt the sick feeling rise within him again. He'd got his answers, but they were so far from the answers he'd hoped for.

"Caroline, love, please."

"No!" she shrieked. "No pleases, no loves, no nothing. You lost that right the day you thought it was okay to dump your best friend for no reason at all."

"There was a reason!" Klaus yelled, desperate for her to understand.

"Then why, _Nik_? Why?" Her voice was strained from the exhaustion, desperation and grief that was shooting through her. "Why on earth did you have to leave me behind?"

"Because I was in love with you!"

The moments the words were out of his mouth, Klaus wanted to stuff them back in. She suddenly went so very still, her heart pounding so much she could nearly see her shirt moving.

That was his most well kept secret. It was something he'd never told, nor acknowledged.

But he knew it to be true.

He knew the reason why he'd never been able to settle on a partner was because the one he desired most was completely out of his reach.

"What?" she asked, in between shuddering breaths.

"I was utterly in love with you, Caroline," he said, a pleading note in his voice.

She stared at him, the hurt still contorting her beautiful face, and Klaus knew he better explain, and quick, or he'd lose her forever.

"I loved you. I loved your beauty, your strength, and your light. I loved the way you could, with mere written words, make me feel more special than anyone else in my life. I loved the poems you wrote me when I was down, and the clumsy pictures you drew me because I was always encouraging you to draw because it was fun."

The blonde across the room seemed to be stripped of her ability to speak so he pressed on. Maybe it was the drink still flowing through his blood, or maybe it was because she never truly flowed away, but now he'd started, he didn't want to stop.

"But how did I tell someone as perfect as you, someone who I'd never met, or touched or smelt or seen with my own two eyes – someone who lived on the opposite side of the world to me, that I loved her."

He took a tentative step forward again, testing the waters. When she made no move to stop him, he went a few steps closer.

"There hasn't been a day in the last ten years when I haven't thought about you. Though I like to pretend there has been."

He was even closer now, and the two lost friends were nearly toe-to-toe. For the first time in his life, Klaus was able to breathe her in. Her scent was intoxicating, and far better than anything he'd imagined.

"Then why did you leave?" Caroline asked, so quietly Klaus could barely hear her. When he didn't answer right away, Caroline asked, louder, her voice cracking ever so slightly, "If you loved me so much, why did you leave?"

It was a question he had been dreading, but knew there was no going back.

"Because you would never have loved me back. To you, I was just some random, gross-looking guy you met on the Internet who happened to share your interests."

"Don't you dare tell me what I felt about you," Caroline snapped, through gritted teeth. "You still didn't answer my question."

He sighed and continued, "You knew I wanted to be an actor. But I couldn't be both nerdy Nik and a successful actor. It wouldn't have worked. I thought if I got rid of who I was, I could become who I wanted to be. And it worked."

Caroline looked unimpressed with his explanation.

"Okay, _Klaus_ ," she spat his name as though it were the worst insult in their language. "I'm part of who you got rid of, I get it. If you are 'who you want to be' now, don't let me stunt your growth anymore."

With that Caroline shoved at his chest and tried to stalk away from him, but she was halted when he grabbed her arm.

"You didn't let me finish," he breathed, trying to ignore the fire suddenly burning within him at having he skin under his hand. "I thought if I left then I could get over someone who would never love me back."

Caroline's eyes began to fill with tears again.

"But I loved you too," she said, her voice so small. "And then you were gone."

Klaus looked at into her eyes at her confession, and he could see the truth of her words swimming within them. He suddenly felt he was going to be sick, as he realised what she had said, and what it meant. He thought of everything he'd achieved over the last ten years, and how he would have thrown it all away had he known Caroline loved him back.

"What if I still love you?" he breathed, his breath fanning over her face.

"Don't be ridiculous, Nik," she chided, quietly. "It's been ten years. You couldn't even begin to know me anymore. Or understand what I went through after you left."

"I know how I feel, Caroline. I still love you."

"Then maybe you can repeat history, and leave. Just like last time."

Her words were harsh, cold, but she refused to fall to pieces over him again. Caroline pulled her arm from his grasp and, without looking at him again, strode over to the door, holding it open.

"Goodbye, Nik," she said. Her voice was devoid of all the emotion she was fighting to keep contained.

Klaus looked as though he'd had his heart torn from his body. But then, Caroline thought as she tried to keep her guilt at bay, that's how she felt as day after day, month after month, year after year passed with no word from him whatsoever.

Klaus knew that this was it. Breaking his own heart, all over again he passed through the door without a word, not trusting himself to speak, and he began trying to hail himself a cab.

He was nearly climbing into it a minute later when, somehow, his nerves steeled. He wouldn't leave her without having the last word this time. Slamming the taxi door, he turned back to Caroline, who was still standing in the entrance to her club.

"I loved you then, and I still do now, Caroline," Klaus said, firmly, painfully aware that he was putting himself up for more rejection. "But I will prove to you how much I care. I will fly you to Paris, Rome or even Tokyo, or any other places we dreamed about visiting before. But make no mistake, I love you."

Caroline's heart stopped at his confession, and she couldn't help but imagine all the images he was conjuring in her head. Klaus turned back, and climbed back into the taxi, which was still hovering on the side of the road. Klaus wound down his window and flashed her his world famous dimples.

"You can love whomever you want before me but, I intend to be your last, however long it takes."

* * *

 **Please don't hate me.**

 **Hope you liked it anyway. I wouldn't be me without a little angst. It gets happier promise. This chapter is really close to my heart, and for anyone who knows me will know why. BUT lol. Review if you like it, if you don't... don't review? I don't know?**

 **Have lovely days, everyone!**


	7. Chapter 7

As the cab door closed behind Klaus mumbled the name of his hotel to the driver before sinking back into his own thoughts. His hands shook, and his heart pumped loudly in his chest. Adrenalin was coursing through his veins and memories and emotions were swirling around his mind.

He couldn't believe any of what just happened. He couldn't believe that he'd actually met _Caroline_ , he couldn't believe that she still remembered him, after all this time. He couldn't believe that she said she loved him back then too.

Klaus' head fell back and he stared at the cab's ceiling. Had he _really_ told her he loved her? Did he actually love her though? He'd said it in the heat of the moment because he could feel her slipping away. He'd promised to be her last, because in that moment he couldn't fathom not being.

But did he mean it?

He groaned loudly and squirmed in his seat.

"Rough night?" the driver said.

"You could say that," he grumbled.

"Want my advice?" the cabbie asked. Klaus' responding 'no' was on the tip of his tongue when the man continued with, "If you truly mean what you said about being 'her last', don't make her wait to see it, while you have your little crisis of faith in my backseat. You're not going to live forever, and she deserves to be happy."

Klaus opened his mouth to respond snidely, but closed it again as he considered the words. The man was right. If he waited too long, she wouldn't even consider giving him another chance.

Klaus sighed and sat up a little straighter, feeling a little woozy due to the booze and the excitement.

A few minutes later, they pulled up outside Klaus' hotel, and he clambered out, pulling his wallet from his pocket as he went. He leant through the driver's window, with a wad of cash, waving a few extra bills around under the man's nose.

"I'd appreciate your discretion on the matters we've discussed," Klaus said.

"Donate that to charity," the driver said, rolling his eyes. "Something to do with kids on the street. I'm no snitch Mr Mikaelson, your secret's safe with me."

And with that, he was driving away. Klaus stared at the cab as it turned the corner, and wondered whether he had a mysterious guardian angel looking over his shoulder.

He traipsed up to his room, and flopped on his bed, head still ringing with questions.

He didn't know what to think. Yes, he said he loved her. But did he really? Was he just lonely? Was it just a line he dropped because he wanted her to keep on his hook? He'd never loved anyone but her before, and that had been a long time ago. He'd been a completely different man back then.

He struggled blearily to his feet and hopped in the shower, hoping the hot jets of water would help clear his mind. But when he stepped out, a good twenty minutes later, he was irritated and desolate to find it really had only made it worse.

Was he actually going to try? What made him say he would be her last love? What the heck would he actually do? How would he do it and not spook her?

Klaus crawled into bed, with every intention of catching a few hours sleep as a reprieve from his overworked mind. But, as was the nature of an overworked mind, it just wouldn't shut down.

Frustrated, Klaus pulled on some clothes, grabbed his phone and wallet and went back down to the street to catch another cab.

Desperate times called for desperate measures.

xxx

As Caroline watched his taxi peter off down the street she could feel a well of deeply buried emotions begin to crack.

She hurried to grab her phone and bag, giving up on finishing her work, and jumped in a cab of her own.

She barely made to the safety of her home before she fell apart. She was thankful for the reprieve the Sunday offered, as she drew her curtains to the outside world unable to do much more than sob, her arms wrapped around her favourite teddy.

Though, surprisingly, her tears weren't just of sadness. She was angry, _boy,_ she was angry, and she was hurt. But she was also happy, confused, frustrated, excited and everything in between. It was strange, and quite unlike anything she'd ever experienced.

Her mind had become a battlefield of conflicting emotions about everything that had transpired that evening between her and her lost friend. She loathed it and loved it. She craved it and wanted it swept under the carpet.

The only thing she could settle on was that Klaus was a fantasy. He was someone she daydreamed about because it was easier than living in her own lonely world. Nik, however, was the reality. And she knew she wouldn't be able to cope with just Klaus, not after knowing Nik.

Caroline lay awake, staring at the ceiling, until the faintest traces of light were visible through the cracks in the curtains. But by now her tears had dried up and her nerves were steeled.

Only time would tell whether Nik would make good on his promise.

And only time would tell whether she wanted him to.

xxx

Klaus staggered from his third cab of the morning, wiping a tired hand over his face, just as first light started to hit the New York sky.

The building was unfamiliar, but he was sure he had the right address.

The 24-hour doorman was suspicious to let him through, but waved him on when Klaus flashed some dollars at him, and promised that he wasn't a murderer. Sometimes being famous came in handy.

Despite his exhaustion, his body was thrumming with energy, and he could hardly contain it as the elevator ferried him up the seventeen stories.

His anxiety and need to talk to someone nearly spilled out of him, as he knocked continuously on the door. He knew it was early, but if he couldn't sleep, then he was going to take it out on those around him.

There was the tell-tale signs of sleepy, groggy feet stumbling towards the door, and then it opened.

Klaus just smiled at the person on the other side of the door.

"What the bloody hell are you doing here?!"

* * *

 **HI! Sorry this took forever... This chapter gave me lots of trouble... I'm still not sure if I'm happy with it... It's a bit of a filler chapter... There are literally 4 complete other chapters to this one, each completely different from the next... BUT, I hope I didn't disappoint after I made you wait like a year (or maybe a century?). Let me know what you think, and if you have any thoughts/suggestions let me know them too, either here or on my Tumblr (queencarolinemikaelson). Until next time my pretties.**


	8. Chapter 8

"What the bloody hell are you doing here?"

The bleary eyed blonde wasn't happy-looking, her hair completely at odds with the perfection it usually was, her face painted face-mask-green, pyjamas askew, as though she had just been woken from slumber.

"I'm waiting Niklaus," Rebekah said, impatiently. "You've hardly talked to me in months – I'm sorry I hated the Petrova girl, and I'm sorry I told her that I hated her, but she was a floozy! – and now you show up on my door at 5am, looking like you've seen a ghost! Speak, or you will be –"

"I met the girl of my dreams tonight, and I told her I loved her, and I don't know what to do," Klaus cut her off, the words tumbling from his mouth, as though if they didn't fight their way out now, they would be stuck in his throat and mind forever.

There was a stunned moment of silence, as Rebekah gaped at him, rendered momentarily speechless at this confession.

"I'll put some coffee on."

Rebekah's thin frame disappeared back into the apartment, and Klaus followed, soon hearing the tell tale signs of a coffee machine being fired up.

Ten minutes later the siblings were staring at each other across kitchen counter, each with a steaming mug in front of them.

"So… you told her you loved her?"

"Yep."

"And do you?"

Klaus looked away, out through the window. The view of New York from Rebekah's window was spectacular, and he was glad for the distraction it offered.

"Nik?"

"I definitely did once. And she is the woman of my dreams. But…"

"But _what_ , Nik?"

Rebekah appraised the drawn look shadowing her brother's face. It was rare to see candour splashed across Klaus' face, and she suspected the vulnerability was coming from a place long since ignored by her brother.

"Not many people get a second chance with the one of their dreams," Rebekah said softly, carefully laying a hand on his. "And even less people get a chance to right past wrongs,"

Rebekah watched him closely, hoping her words wouldn't spook him back into introversion. "I don't want to tell you what to do, but if you truly believe she's the woman of your dreams, then fight for it."

"What if I lose?" he breathed, fear etched into every line of his chiselled face. "What if she doesn't love me back? What if she can't?"

The hand still resting on her brother's curled, squeezing it knowingly. "Then you will come out a stronger person. And she will be worse off for it."

Klaus gave his sister the tiniest of smiles. It was the kind of smile that Rebekah had always lived for. The one she knew meant he understood her. The one that was so vulnerable, but was safe, and just for her.

"Thank you, Bekah."

"Yes, well," she said, abruptly falling back to her usual brash self. "Off you trot. You have already made me lose enough sleep."

"But…"

"Sleep on the couch, if you must, but I'm going to bed."

And with that, she was gone through her bedroom door, leaving Klaus to collapse on the couch, finally at enough peace to fall into a deep sleep.

* * *

 **To my dearest, dearest Klaroliners. BLoody hell, it's been a long long time. I'm really sorry _really_ sorry for that. Time really just flew away from me. It's already May this year, and I honestly feel like I woke up yesterday with it being June 2016. I've had a number of people asking for this story to be finished. And it will. Here is a little filler chapter. Pop over to my tumblr (queencarolinemikaelson) if you want to read a little bit about my inactivity and what I plan on doing with the rest of my currently unfinished stories. I cannot bloody believe I became one of those fic writers who don't update their stories for years. WAhh :( ! Hope you like this. And I will be back in less than a year with more, I absolutely pinky promise. **


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